In this week's Newswire you can enjoy a curated list of the latest customer loyalty, technology, payments, and other relevant marketing news. We include a spectrum of topics, all with the intention of keeping you informed and enabling you to star in your next big meeting.
The Loyalty Newswire makes it simple for busy professionals (e.g. YOU) to quickly digest important industry news and trending topics. Keep reading!
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- Starbucks announces Starbucks for Life holiday campaign
- What's in a McDonald's Gold Card?
- Webinar Announcement: Future-Proof Customer Experience Strategies
- New Soulbound NFT loyalty program from MoonPay
- Asda Rewards customers complain about loss of rewards currency
- Don't miss Mission Loyalty - Episode 5 from Antavo
- Zinrelo launches 100% Charitable Matching Program
Starbucks for Life
Starbucks is running a holiday campaign that is one of the most aggressive in recent memory. By participating, customers can earn “Starbucks for life, 6 months or even 1 month”. Tickets on Delta Air Lines for two are possible as well as modest but immediately gratifying free “next coffee or bakery items”. Multiple games offer chances to win. “Shake the (snow) globe” to collect badges and accumulate enough to win prizes. There are instant winning opportunities as well. The gamified approach offers a set of activities, up to 5 per day, that customers can complete to earn more opportunities to play and win. In the holiday spirit, Starbucks has added a charitable feature, donating to No Kid Hungry based on participation.
What’s in a McDonald’s Gold Card?
In short, holders of the McDonald’s Gold Card can enjoy “McDonald’s for life.” Beginning December 5, every purchase using the McDonald’s App get customers one step closer to winning that elusive Gold Card. Winners can share the joy as three friends will also benefit from the Gold Card. The promotion confirms the existence of the Gold Card itself and moves it from lore to reality. Over the past 5 years, McDonald’s has teased the market by issuing Gold Cards to billionaires and celebrities. Now, it is finally trickling down to everyday consumers.
Webinar Announcement: Future-Proof Customer Experience Strategies
Join The Wise Marketer and customer experience professionals from Ford, Puma Energy, Politecnico Milano, and Comarch for a lively discussion of what successful brands do to engage customers and build trust. The group will share their insider's view on the strategies and techniques they find most useful in their line of work today.
The webinar will be LIVE on Wednesday December 14 at 9am ET. Please visit here to learn more about the content to be shared and to register for the webinar.
MoonPay is rolling out Soulbound NFT loyalty program early next year
MoonPay, the Crypto payments infrastructure firm seeking to simplify consumer participation in the Crypto economy, rolling out what it calls a "soulbound" NFT loyalty program for its users. Announcements are scheduled in conjunction with Art Basel in Miami.
Soulbound tokens are non-transferable tokens representing a person's identity using blockchain technology. Dubbed the "Web3 Passport," the token will grant its owner access to exclusive events. MoonPay states that it has more than 10 million customers and all verified customers can join the passport program, with additional tiers to be added over the next year.
Asda Rewards customers are complaining about loss of rewards currency
According to a report from the Money Saving Expert, a UK based consumer advocacy group, Asda Rewards customers are reporting numerous interactions that hint at a data breach of the company’s loyalty program. To date, Asda has denied that a data breach has occurred. Some customers state their balances are incorrect while others report they are unable to access their accounts with their login details.
An Asda spokesperson told MSE said: "We are really proud of the success of the Asda Rewards app since it’s official launch in August. "So far there have been over 5 million downloads and there are currently around 3 million active users, all benefiting from the extra rewards they are getting whilst doing their weekly shop with Asda. If any customer has an issue whilst using the Asda Rewards app, we would ask that they contact us so that we can look into this for them."
Mission: Loyalty - Episode 5 is live
In the latest episode in the Mission: Loyalty series from Antavo Enterprise Loyalty Cloud, Secret Agent Jess is on a mission to discover what the biggest brands do right when it comes to their loyalty program. She goes undercover and investigates what makes them sooo special that customers cannot resist. Every company can get out there and make something unique and unlike anyone else’s loyalty program. But there’s so much to learn from the companies who are doing loyalty programs well, which is why it’s worth examining “the greats”. Agent Jess investigates eight companies that are real loyalty trendsetters. Just to name some examples, you’ll hear about Nike, The Home Depot, Marriott, and many more in her article. You can find all episodes in the Mission: Loyalty series on the Wise Marketer.
Zinrelo brings Cheer to the Holiday Season by Launching a 100% Charitable Matching Program
Zinrelo announced a 100% charitable matching program for the 1 Billion+ loyalty members on the Zinrelo platform. Zinrelo is a SaaS-based loyalty platform being used by over 2,000 global brands, to launch their custom, personalized loyalty rewards programs. Through this charitable matching campaign, Zinrelo allows members to donate their loyalty points to a charitable cause instead of redeeming these points for their own benefit. Members can choose from dozens of charities including American Red Cross, Save the Children, American Civil Liberties Union, and many more. Zinrelo will match all such charitable donations dollar-for-dollar through Dec 31, 2022. In the company’s press release, Samir Palnitkar, VP of Customer Success at Zinrelo stated “We strongly believe that giving back to the community is an investment in our shared future and a way to make the holiday season special. Zinrelo is proud to announce this 100% charitable matching program. We hope to light up a million smiles across the globe.”
Quote of the Week
Seth Godin comments on how he defines Expertise in his blog:
“In a competition between someone who knows the most and someone who is willing to learn the most, the edge usually goes to the curious and empathic professional, not the one who is simply protecting what’s already known.”
Everyone participating in the world of customer loyalty marketing should keep this in mind. Stay curious friends.
Trend of the Week
Some interesting stats from the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region to share this week:
- Ecommerce is growing at an unprecedented pace, with a recent report showing that 91% of consumers in the region bought products online in the past year.
- Half of the consumers in markets such as UAE and Saudi Arabia used Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL) options during 2022 and as many as 67 per cent across Mena indicated they may use it in 2023.
- 55 per cent of 18–35-year-olds in UAE and Saudi Arabia would like to be able to pay for goods and services in crypto or stablecoins in the next 12 months.
Read more in this report from Checkout.com, a cloud based payments platform.
Miss the previous newswire? Stay informed: Loyalty Newswire – November 28, 2022
The Loyalty Newswire is compiled and edited by the hard-working, customer-centric, data-driven staff at The Wise Marketer.
